Another marathon milestone for centenarian Fauja Singh

Another marathon milestone for centenarian Fauja Singh

Hundred-year-old Fauja Singh maintained his awe-inspiring record at the marathons after he became the first centenarian to complete the Toronto marathon on Sunday.

Ironically, the event witnessed the death of a 27-year-old, who collapsed and died just 300 metres from the finish line. The Canadian Press reported that it appeared he suffered a heart attack while running the half-marathon.

Running his eight marathon, Fauja Singh, completed the run in eight hours, 11 minutes and 5.9 seconds, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

The marathon was won by Kenneth Mungara of Kenya in a time of two hours, nine minutes and 51 seconds.

A British citizen, Fauja Singh first entered the record books when in 2003, he finished the Toronto race in five hours, 40 minutes and one second.

Fauja eyeing Edinburgh Marathon Festival 2012

Singh holds UK records for the 200 m, 400 m, 800 m, mile and 3000 m for his age group, records all set within a single 94 minute period.

His current personal best time for the London Marathon (2003) is 6 hours 2 minutes.

The Sikh from Punjab says he developed his love for running while working as a farmer in the state. But it was not until he moved to the UK, half a century later, that he took up the sport seriously.

With the help of his coach, Harminder Singh, he started challenging other pensioners to races.

"If someone says I must stop running I ignore them -- invariably they're younger than me. The secret to a long and healthy life is to be stress-free.

"If there's something you can't change then why worry about it? Be grateful for everything you have, stay away from people who are negative, stay smiling and keep running," he had said in the Daily Mail.

The nimble-footed centenarian, has now completed eight marathons since turning 89.

Fauja Singh was the first to sign up for the 2012 Edinburgh race, now hopes to take part in the Edinburgh Marathon Festival 2012, 26.2-mile race, as part of a four-man relay team with an average age of 86.